Environmental expert witness Erwin Iskandar said Thursday that Sutiyoso’s Jakarta administration should be held responsible for the massive floods that crippled the city in February. Iskandar is the head of Trisakti University’s research institute and said the local administration should have been able to properly anticipate the February floods. The governement has been criticized for failing to anticipate the floods. The JakartaPost.com also reports the expert witness stating:
‘Jakarta has been flooded for the past 400 years. With the help of his advisors, the governor should have been able to anticipate (the floods) through a number of efforts, including fixing the flood gates built during the Dutch colonial era’… The February floods inundated around 70 percent the national capital, paralyzing transport and commerce and forcing many to move to makeshift shelters… Thursday’s hearing was part of a court case filed by Jakarta residents represented by non-profit organization Jakarta Residents Forum (Fakta) against the administration and Sutiyoso. The residents alleged both the governor and his administration had been negligent in their efforts to prevent and deal with the consequences of the flooding.